Systems for carrying spray containers are old and well known in the art. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,975 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,477,999, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
The system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,975 includes a holster which receives a sleeve therein. The sleeve is elongated and includes a flange extending laterally outward from its upper end to aid in the formation of a trigger guard. Unfortunately, the upper end flange/trigger guard of the '975 patent is undesirable for a number of reasons. For example, the trigger guard is sometimes ineffective in that once the spring within the sleeve forces the spray canister even slightly upwardly, the trigger guard is no longer effective and spray may be accidentally discharged. Additionally, the upper end sleeve flange results in there being no significant protection for a top or upper portion of the spray canister. Yet another disadvantage of the embodiment shown on the cover page of the '975 patent is that the trigger is entirely exposed (e.g. for grabbing by a user) even when the spray canister is within the sleeve and the holster is closed.
It is apparent from the above that there exists a need in the art for an improved system for carrying pepper spray and/or mace canisters which: (i) provides an efficient trigger guard; (ii) provides protection to a top or upper portion of the spray canister; (iii) maintains the spray nozzle in a given direction relative to the sleeve when a substantial or reasonable portion of the canister is in the sleeve; and/or (iv) allows easy access for a user to quickly and efficiently remove the canister from the sleeve and/or holster.
It is a purpose of this invention to fulfill any or all of the above-described needs in the art, as well as other needs which will become apparent to the skilled artisan from the following detailed description of this invention.